At home in McMurdo- for now

The last few days have been spent packing up all our food and gear in McMurdo Station. To get our food, we went to the upstairs of a large Quonset hut, which was organized like a small grocery store. We were the only ones there, and we spent a couple hours picking out what we wanted, then boxing it up and weighing the boxes. All together it came to 512 pounds and 46 boxes of dried, canned, and frozen food. With different members of the project on different schedules, there will be quite a few helicopters flying back and forth through the season, so we ought to get resupplied every 3 weeks or so.




With our pile of food.

Thursday night after doing the food, Annie and I walked over to Scott Base, the New Zealand research station about a mile from McMurdo. Once a week they have "American Night", where they open their bar to McMurdoans. It was fun to hang out with some Kiwis and drink their beer. The walk back was especially beautiful, with the low sun glinting off far-away ice and big mountains silhouetted against a pale cold sky.



Looking west from the walk between McMurdo and Scott Base.



Good name for a research station.

We've also been testing, organizing, and packing gear. We filled up a full sized pick-up and drove all our equipment down to the helicopter pad on Friday, with the hope that on Saturday Grant would get to fly out to Crozier and begin setting up camp. However, that night the wind started to pick up, and we learned that a storm was on its way.

Friday afternoon the predicted storm really clamped down on McMurdo, and travel outside the station was prohibited. Overhead power lines sounded like jet engines in the wind, and one particular set of outdoor stairs was singing eerily. Today has been a day of snow, low visibility, and more wind. At times buildings that are just 100 meters or so away vanish in the white. All through the day the air has been filled with tiny windblown ice crystals and dust.




Heavy wind and snow. Temp 12 F. Peak wind on Fri was 48 knots, though the station is in a protected little nook between three small peaks.




My first impressions of McMurdo Station were of a giant ski resort. People move between square, stout buildings. The stairways are heavy steel mesh with traction teeth to facilitate snow removal from shoes. But as I’ve spent more time here I’ve become acquainted with all that is going on. There are about 7 support staff here for every scientist, and as you can imagine there is a lot of support going. In reality, McMurdo is part mining town, part logistics hub, part high tech science facility, part college dorm, part military base, and still part ski resort.

There is always something going on. While walking back from Scott Base two nights ago there were loaders moving dirt around at 10:30 pm. In the middle of the night the bathrooms are being cleaned. There is a “lunch” from midnight to 1 am for the night shift. Work doesn't stop for the weather, at least not this weather. Forklifts and shuttles drive back and forth industriously. People dart from one building to the next. There is a sort of urgent rush to get out in the field and get work done before winter's darkness overtakes the continent.

Hopefully soon we will be headed out to begin our acquaintance with the Adelies.